Diffuser for centrifugal blowers



June l0, 1947. v T, JACKSON 2,421,888

DIFFUSERVFOR CENTRIFUGAL BLOWERS Fiiea May 27, 1942 4 sheets-sheet 1 INVENTOR. 7-7omas ECL/sari June l0, 1947. T. JAcKsoN DIFFUSER FOR CENTRIFUGAL BLOWERS Filed May 27, 1942 4'Sheets-Sheet 2 1N V EN TOR. 7 `orna @jackson @Z22/weg.

June l0,` 1947.

T. JAKsoN DIFFUSER FOR CENTRIFUGAL BLOWERS Filed May 27, 1942 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Y INVENTOR. 7/Ioma\ Q 7de/500 June 10, 1947. T. JACKSON 2,421,888

DIFFUSER FOR CE'NTRIFUGAL BLowERs Filed May' 27, 1942 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INV ENT OR. 7770/7705 0650/? @tto/weg.

Patented June 10, 1947 DIFFUSER FOR CENTRIFUGAL BLOWER/S Thomas Jackson, North Muskegon, Mich., as-

signor to Continental Motors Corporatiom Muskegon, Mich., a corporation of Virginia Application May 27, 1942, Serial No. 444,695

1 Claim.

My invention relates to internal combustion engines and more particularly to a cooling system for same, and applicable especially with an engine of the horizontal opposed cylinder type.

Much difficulty has been experienced in air cooling internal combustion engines of the horizontal opposed cylinder type, especially when such engines are used in power plants other than aeronautical, due principally to the fact that there is a minimum air circulation induced by movementof the power plant through the air. It is thus necessary to provide some additional means for inducing the ow of an adequate circulation of cooling air around the engine cylinders, and for controlling of the airow, in order that maximum cooling may be had.

An object of my present invention is to `facilitate engine performance by constructing means inducing a circulation of cooling air around all the engine cylinders and obtaining a maximum cooling of the engine by providing an improved cowling structure and blower assembly.

Another object of my present invention is to facilitate the circulation of cooling air over the finned cylinders of an internal combustion engine by providing an improved blower construction including a blower housing having outlets constructed and arranged to facilitate the exhausting of air from the blower housing thereby facilitating air circulation over the engine cylinders.

A further object of my present invention is to improve engine performance by providing an improved air cooling cowling structure for said engine, which structure includes an external hood portion enclosing all engine cylinders and internal bailiing portions dening passages which conne the circulation of cooling air in proximity with the cylinder fittings.

Still further objects of my present invention relate to various details of construction including the means for clamping or otherwise securing the cowling structure to the engine.

For a more detailed understanding of my invention reference may be had to the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of my invention, in which like characters refer to like parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan View of an engine of the horizontal opposed cylinder type and illustrating in plan the cowling structure and blower assembly,

Fig. 2; is a side view thereof illustrating the detailed construction of the cowling structure,

Fig. 3 is an end View of the blower housing,

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Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail sectional view through `the blower housing Vtaken substantially on the line 4--4 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 5 is a plan sectional view through said engine cowling structure showing the internal cylinder bailies, and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary detail sectional view of said internal cylinder baffle construction.

The present cooling system is particularly constructed for assembly with an internal combustion engine A of the horizontal opposed cylinder type. l0 indicates the engine crankcase structure and Il indicates the opposed cylinders to which are secured the cylinder heads I2. Each of the cylinders carries a plurality of annular cooling fins I3.

The `fly-wheel housing I4 is secured to the end of the"engine and carries suitable brackets I5 by which same is supported. This flywheel housing is provided with a blower housing portion I6, having a plurality of outlets I1 about its periphery.

The cowling structure 20 includes an external hood structure 2l constructed and shaped to overlie and substantially house all said engine cylinders. The hood structure aforesaid is secured to the flywheel and blower housing by suitable bolts or other fastening devices 22, and includes a longitudinally extending tunnel 23 overlying the engine and which communicates with an annular ring tunnel 24a, same having suitable outlets 25a communicating with the interior of the blower housing. This hood structure is open on the underneath side and the cooling air is caused to flow about said engine cylinders in the general direction as indicated by arrows 24 and 25, or in other words, substantially upwardly past the finned engine cylinders.

In the cooling means of the character described it is necessary that the cooling air ilow in contact with the finned engine cylinder, and in the present device this is preferably accomplished by providing means which confine the flow of cooling air to a path adjacent to said cylinder fins. This is preferably accomplished by suitable baiiles 2t which are clamped, by means of a bolt 21 and a spring wire clamp 28, to fit around the peripheral edge of the cylinder ns (see Fig. 2). The dotted arrows indicate generally the path of the stream of air flowing about the engine cylinders and arrows 25 indicate how the airows from the outlet of the air passages defined by these baiiles 2li into the external hood structure, thence into the annular ring conduit as indicated by arrows 29 and then subsequently into the blower housing as indicated by arrows 30.

It will be noted that the bafll'es 26 are securely clamped about the engine cylinders by means of these spring wire clips 28, same being hooked as at 3l to the baille, and yieldingly engaged at a mid-portion 32 with the engine cylinder. Suitable brackets 33 are provided for supporting these bailles by the external hood structure.

The outlets I7 of the blower housing I6 are formed by triangularly shaped integral bridge portions or transverse bars 40 which are substantially equally annularly spaced about the entire peripheral surface of the blower housing. One side of each of these triangularly shaped bridge members or bars 4 0 lies substantially flush with the peripheral surface of the blower housing and the said other two sides of the housing b ars 40 are preferably inclined somewhat to a radial plane as indicated .by the dot and dash line P-P (see Fig. 4).

` One of said two sides designated 42 is straight while said other side 43 `is convex. The air ows radially outwardly of the blower housing through the outlet openings I7 as indicated generally by arrows 44. The relatively wide mouth, of the discharge or outlet openings I l is indicated at 45, and the outlet of said opening is indicated at 46. At an intermediate portion of the outlet or discharge opening I1, there is a restricted portion 47, which thus forms a venturi which facilitates the discharge of air outwardly of the blower housing, thereby materially increasing the eciency of the air 110W and the circulation of the cooling air about the engine cylinders.

Although I have illustrated but one form of my invention, and have described in detail but a single application thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art t Which my invention pertains, that various modifications and changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit ofV my invention or from the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

In a radial blower housing, a series of openings formed by circumferentially aligned transverse bars annularly spaced around the blower rotor, the bars having a three-sided cross-sectional conguration such that one side of each bar lies in the surface of a cylinder lwhich is common to all the bars, one other side of each bar within the openings extending toward an adjacent bar to create a restricted portion in each opening having smaller dimensions than the opening at the surface of the aforesaid cylinder to provide a venturi effect whereby outward movement of air is facilitated.

THOMAS JACKSON.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 596,271 Lanchester Dec. 28, 1897 1,508,700 Kettering Sept. 16, 1924 1,635,039 Fales July 5, 1927 1,683,602 Brockway Sept. 1l, 1928 1,997,173 Gosslau et al Apr. 9, 1935 2,076,653 Ledwinka Apr. 13, 1937 2,219,516 Doman et al Oct. 29, 1940 1,510,766 Clark Oct. 7, 1924 2,037,880 Charavay Apr 21, 1936 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 799,359 France 1936 175,554 Great Britain Feb. 23, 1922 437,046 France Apr. 11, 1912 81,192 Switzerland Oct. 1, 1919 358,457

Great Britain Apr. 4, 1930 

